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From: "Alister John Marsh" <>
Subject: Re: [DNA] Does Sardinia hold the key to the debate aboutNeolithicor Paleolithic dispersal of R-M269?
Date: Thu, 27 May 2010 11:32:50 +1200
References: <AANLkTinEq_2xAofI_ttFnOgfhjWcPIrOmfH58K4TGdRa@mail.gmail.com><REME20100526163921@alum.mit.edu>
In-Reply-To: <REME20100526163921@alum.mit.edu>
John,
You said...
>>>>>>>
On the other hand, there is the problem of contamination.........
Bottom line: both positive and negative test results can be doubted
or swept under the rug, and so I can't see relying on ancient DNA
for the resolution.
<<<<<<<
There are ways of minimizing contamination. For example, I believe many
labs testing Y-DNA use only female staff, so that they can't contaminate
samples with their own Y-DNA.
If there was an important isolated site being excavated, and it was hoped to
obtain good archeological Y-DNA tor testing, the whole project could be
carried out to the highest standards. Female archaeologists only, female
lab staff only, a new lab and new equipment to avoid risks of contamination.
If you feel that contamination is such a rampant problem, and the scientific
community so unreliable that they can't sterilize equipment, identify and
account for contamination, then I suppose every person in prison convicted
on DNA evidence will be quoting you in an effort to get their "beyond
reasonable doubt" conviction overturned.
Are you placing into question King Tut's results which appear as though they
might be R1b?
I have heard there are various means to identify and allow for possible
modern contamination, and over time, statistical analysis of multiple
results, and independent testing at different labs, would enable the chances
of contamination to be reasonably accurately evaluated.
If statistical analysis to evaluate the chances of contamination is
rejected, because of the unreliability of statistical methods, perhaps
current haplogroup and subclade age estimates based on statistical analysis
of STRs needs to be thrown out right now as too unreliable to trust.
If a female archaeologist finds a cave man who died in the act of writing
"Elroy was here, 27 May 10,000 BC" on the wall of his cave, and they test
his DNA, I would say there is a good chance that reliably dated
archeological DNA could be tested with "beyond reasonable doubt" levels of
certainty. But we all know that I am an optimist.
John.
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| Re: [DNA] Does Sardinia hold the key to the debate aboutNeolithicor Paleolithic dispersal of R-M269? by "Alister John Marsh" <> |